Children with movement disorders, such as cerebral palsy, have difficulty walking due to stiff or weak muscles. Due to their lack of mobility, many children cannot easily move from place to place and require external support devices or parental assistance. One such external support device, a gait trainer, typically includes a metal or plastic frame attached to wheels so that a child can travel from place to place without parental assistance, with minimal risk of falling or injuring themselves.
Typical gait trainers include heavy materials and complex designs in order to provide a child with adequate support and to minimize equipment malfunction. However, these design choices often result in overly-complicated, expensive apparatuses that sacrifice mobility for safety. Because these typical gait trainers are large and heavy, it can be difficult for a child to move upstairs, turn corners, or travel along narrow hallways. When transporting typical gait trainers to locations outside of the home, vehicles must be specifically outfitted with equipment to secure and fit large, heavy apparatuses. Additionally, these heavy gait trainers can be prohibitively expensive and can result in an enormous financial burden. There is, therefore, a need for a light-weight, inexpensive, and mobile gait trainer that a child can use individually with minimal difficulty.